Crime Statistics

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The Berkeley County Commission's failure to fund a computerized crime reporting system has put the Sheriff's Department in violation of state law for the past nine months, Sheriff Ron Jones said at a Thursday County Commission meeting. "I'm the sheriff of the county in charge of enforcing the law and I'm being forced to break the law. That's sad," Jones said. The commissioners said they were unaware of the problem and promised to take care of it next week.

Crime statistics cannot be trusted, for a number of reasons To the editor: Periodically, politicians inundate us with crime statistics. I find this totally absurd. Crime "statistics" are totally unreliable. They often prove the opposite of what is claimed. There are two glaring problems with so-called crime statistics: They only cover reported crimes rated as felonies. As to "reported," many crimes are never reported. Rape is generally rated as the most under-reported for a number of reasons, with mistreatment of the victims by police and the courts being a major one. When reported rapes go down, this does not mean police and courts are doing a good job as politicians claim, but rather that women have lost faith in them.

More than one in every eight crimes in Hagerstown were committed in downtown in recent years, but local officials disagree on whether the figures show the downtown is safe. [cont. from front page ] Washington County Commissioners Paul L. Swartz and Bert L. Iseminger Jr. said the statistics show that the downtown area is unsafe. Hagerstown Mayor Robert E. Bruchey II, several City Council members and some downtown business owners say downtown is safe. According to City Police Department records, in each year from 1995 through 1998 roughly 13 percent of all reported crimes in Hagerstown happened downtown.

Chief says Y2K killed cops' crime-tracking computer By DAN KULIN dank@herald-mail.com For more than a year the Hagerstown Police Department has been working without computer software that helps police track crime trends, but Chief Arthur Smith said he is hopeful a plan to get the department back online will be finalized soon. "One of the things that's missing is if someone asks for crime statistics for their neighborhood we couldn't go back a year because it would take forever," Smith said.

Throughout Fairgrounds Park Tuesday evening, a unique sound hung in the humid air. It was a symphony composed by 1,000 people, led by a splash of water layered with youthful squeals, punctuated by crunching chips and popping balloons as the call of prize numbers rose over the melody of conversation. The din rising from the park was the music of crime prevention as people gathered for National Night Out, said organizer Carolyn Brooks. A national event aimed at stemming the tide of crime through community-police partnership, awareness and open dialogue, Brooks said she has been orchestrating the event for the last decade.

WASHINGTON COUNTY An increase in crimes like robberies and burglaries in 2006 is related to "the dark side" of growth in Washington County, according to Sheriff Douglas Mullendore. "Crime has gone up more than we are capable of taking care of," Mullendore said. "... The risk of being arrested for a crime is decreasing because the resources to arrest has remained the same. " The number of burglaries handled by the Sheriff's Department increased by more than 100 from 2005 to 2006.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A local minister who has opposed gambling expansion at Charles Town Races said he is upset over a report that says the county's 1998 crime rate was 19.1 percent higher than in 1997. cont. from news page Mike Withem, pastor at the First Baptist Church of Ranson, said he is particularly concerned that Ranson's crime rate has jumped 21.6 percent, the figure reported in the new state Uniform Crime Report compiled by the West Virginia State Police. During a public hearing last September on the track's proposal to add another 500 slot machines, Ranson Police Chief William Roper commented that there has been no increase in crime in town, Withem said.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - An increase in crimes like robberies and burglaries in 2006 is related to "the dark side" of growth in Washington County, according to Sheriff Douglas Mullendore. "Crime has gone up more than we are capable of taking care of," Mullendore said. "... The risk of being arrested for a crime is decreasing because the resources to arrest has remained the same. " The number of burglaries handled by the Sheriff's Department increased by more than 100 from 2005 to 2006.

tammyb@herald-mail.com WASHINGTON COUNTY Once upon a time, according to Lt. Randy Wilkinson, 75 percent to 80 percent of the calls answered by Washington County Sheriff's deputies came from locations near Hagerstown. Now, not only are the number of calls to the sheriff's department rising, they're "spreading out," Wilkinson said. "At least once a week, I get a call from someone out in the county who wants to know, 'Why did it take a police officer 25 to 35 minutes to get here?

Throughout Fairgrounds Park Tuesday evening, a unique sound hung in the humid air. It was a symphony composed by 1,000 people, led by a splash of water layered with youthful squeals, punctuated by crunching chips and popping balloons as the call of prize numbers rose over the melody of conversation. The din rising from the park was the music of crime prevention as people gathered for National Night Out, said organizer Carolyn Brooks. A national event aimed at stemming the tide of crime through community-police partnership, awareness and open dialogue, Brooks said she has been orchestrating the event for the last decade.

Crime statistics cannot be trusted, for a number of reasons To the editor: Periodically, politicians inundate us with crime statistics. I find this totally absurd. Crime "statistics" are totally unreliable. They often prove the opposite of what is claimed. There are two glaring problems with so-called crime statistics: They only cover reported crimes rated as felonies. As to "reported," many crimes are never reported. Rape is generally rated as the most under-reported for a number of reasons, with mistreatment of the victims by police and the courts being a major one. When reported rapes go down, this does not mean police and courts are doing a good job as politicians claim, but rather that women have lost faith in them.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - An increase in crimes like robberies and burglaries in 2006 is related to "the dark side" of growth in Washington County, according to Sheriff Douglas Mullendore. "Crime has gone up more than we are capable of taking care of," Mullendore said. "... The risk of being arrested for a crime is decreasing because the resources to arrest has remained the same. " The number of burglaries handled by the Sheriff's Department increased by more than 100 from 2005 to 2006.

WASHINGTON COUNTY An increase in crimes like robberies and burglaries in 2006 is related to "the dark side" of growth in Washington County, according to Sheriff Douglas Mullendore. "Crime has gone up more than we are capable of taking care of," Mullendore said. "... The risk of being arrested for a crime is decreasing because the resources to arrest has remained the same. " The number of burglaries handled by the Sheriff's Department increased by more than 100 from 2005 to 2006.

tammyb@herald-mail.com WASHINGTON COUNTY Once upon a time, according to Lt. Randy Wilkinson, 75 percent to 80 percent of the calls answered by Washington County Sheriff's deputies came from locations near Hagerstown. Now, not only are the number of calls to the sheriff's department rising, they're "spreading out," Wilkinson said. "At least once a week, I get a call from someone out in the county who wants to know, 'Why did it take a police officer 25 to 35 minutes to get here?

Violent crimes have dropped in HotSpot By ANDREW SCHOTZ andrews@herald-mail.com Ed Hood II doesn't miss the daily jumble of prostitutes and drug users outside Market Lot Liquors. "People were under the influence of drugs. Just dealing with that type of person in the grips of addiction ... just having them around was a nuisance," said Hood, who has worked at the market on West Church Street, off Jonathan Street, for 16 years. For a while, it was the quality of life around the market that was declining.

Chief says Y2K killed cops' crime-tracking computer By DAN KULIN dank@herald-mail.com For more than a year the Hagerstown Police Department has been working without computer software that helps police track crime trends, but Chief Arthur Smith said he is hopeful a plan to get the department back online will be finalized soon. "One of the things that's missing is if someone asks for crime statistics for their neighborhood we couldn't go back a year because it would take forever," Smith said.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A local minister who has opposed gambling expansion at Charles Town Races said he is upset over a report that says the county's 1998 crime rate was 19.1 percent higher than in 1997. cont. from news page Mike Withem, pastor at the First Baptist Church of Ranson, said he is particularly concerned that Ranson's crime rate has jumped 21.6 percent, the figure reported in the new state Uniform Crime Report compiled by the West Virginia State Police. During a public hearing last September on the track's proposal to add another 500 slot machines, Ranson Police Chief William Roper commented that there has been no increase in crime in town, Withem said.

More than one in every eight crimes in Hagerstown were committed in downtown in recent years, but local officials disagree on whether the figures show the downtown is safe. [cont. from front page ] Washington County Commissioners Paul L. Swartz and Bert L. Iseminger Jr. said the statistics show that the downtown area is unsafe. Hagerstown Mayor Robert E. Bruchey II, several City Council members and some downtown business owners say downtown is safe. According to City Police Department records, in each year from 1995 through 1998 roughly 13 percent of all reported crimes in Hagerstown happened downtown.